


It would have been scandalous, if not for the end of the world

by EtuBrutus



Category: Renegades - Marissa Meyer
Genre: Gen, M/M, The OG Renegades are fed up, except for simon and hugh they're in love, it would be weird for them to be family, they're one big happy family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-28
Updated: 2018-08-28
Packaged: 2019-07-03 19:42:01
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,710
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15825651
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EtuBrutus/pseuds/EtuBrutus
Summary: Hugh, Simon, Tamaya, Kasumi, Georgia, and Evander have the weight of Gatlon's safety on their shoulders; ending the Age of Anarchy requires their best and most focused efforts.However, with two of their Renegades stumbling through their mess of feelings for each other, somebody's bound to get hurt.In which we see where Adrian gets him romantic obliviousness from. (spoiler alert: it’s his dads.)





	It would have been scandalous, if not for the end of the world

Evander could do without nightly patrol, he really could.

The cold air bit into his skin through his light-absorbing suit, which was practically useless in the dark anyway. It was 11:30 when Kasumi had ditched shift and left him and Simon on impromptu patrol.

Hugh and Tamaya had just finished their shift, and of course, Captain Chromium, with his practically _metal skin_ had got away before the freezing Gatlon gale set in. Tamaya was genetically part-bird, so she’d be able to sit in the snow naked if she wanted to.

Simon was sitting next to him, radiating anger and self-pity. He’d turned himself a weird, flickering translucent.

Evander figured it was one of _those_ days when Simon would slip into himself and try to be, well, invisible from the rest of them. Sometimes, he actually would be. He was the Dread Warden, and he screwed up the light spectrum on a daily basis (Evander would be a hypocrite in saying that out loud, though.)

Normally, he wouldn't have a problem with this. He'd just let Simon simmer and get it over with, however long it took. It was one of the reasons the Renegades came to Evander whenever they needed to vent; he was great at listening. (Even better at noticing things.)

However, Renegades ware paired together during patrol for a reason: both of them would be alert enough to watch the other’s back if they needed to. The Anarchists had almost gutted each of them countless times, and it was more than enough to keep them on their toes. Simon would have to get it together. The six of them had to shoulder all of Gatlon's safety; they didn't have time for worrying about themselves.

Evander decided to risk Simon’s famed temper. “Simon?”

No response. God, _what_ a drama queen.

He was about to flick a moonbeam at the guy when he heard Simon’s quiet voice, "Something...Something's up with Hugh."

Evander hesitated- he hadn't been expecting something so… subdued. Simon's temper was usually a seething hatred kind of thing, so a quiet observation was out of the ordinary.

Simon was looking at him expectantly.

“I haven't noticed anything strange,” Evander said, reluctantly scanning the road below for any signs of trouble. “Is it the same old ‘I'm not strong enough’ thing? The guy’s made of fucking _chromium_ , he’ll get over it.”

The comment invited a reply, and both Renegades knew it.

Simon scowled before mumbling, "It’s not that. It’s...he's been acting odd lately. As though he doesn't feel comfortable around us. He keeps glancing away when I look at him." Simon’s body came into full focus, and he turned to Evander. "I don't get it. Doesn't he _trust_ me? I'm not...I’m _capable_ of defending the team. Why does he act all jumpy whenever I go out for patrol?"

Evander didn’t reply, and allowed the restless silence to settle over them. The rational part of him _assumed_ that Simon was being a melodramatic and was acting paranoid over nothing. The rest of him _knew_ that Simon never said anything unless he was completely sure about it and would follow it to the grave.

He mulled over what Simon had said. Now that he thought about it, while Hugh hadn’t ever doubted Evander without reason, he _had_ been acting differently towards Simon. Nothing much, really, just a few strange glances and being less willing to send the guy on missions.

An idea was forming in Evander’s head. It was pretty absurd but… it _did_ make the most sense.

Captain Chromium acting strangely- almost protectively towards _only_ Simon. The Dread Warden himself replacing his explosive temper with subdued concern for Hugh.  
It could be a ridiculous coincidence... _or_.

Or.

Evander chose to go with ‘or,’ no matter how unlikely he’d thought of it happening.

The only issue now was to check up on the current situation. How exactly did Simon feel about Captain Chromium? Simon’s ability to conceal his emotions infuriated Evander-  
the last person who’d been _that_ good had been Evander’s brother.

He racked his brain for ways to get through Simon’s shell. Evander glanced up at the moldy old clock-tower - it read 12.30AM.  
Patrol had lasted for an hour already, and he literally _could not_ feel his limbs anymore. The cold had numbed them beyond belief. God, Captain Chromium was actually made of chromium metal, and he was cozying up back at Headquarters.

There was absolutely no way Hugh would be asleep yet though; the earliest his timetable allowed for was 2:00 AM. Tamaya, as his partner, would have more or less the same timings. Most people would think of it as a coincidence.

Evander thought of the situation as extremely exploitable.

He broke the silence and shifted, so he was sitting directly opposite Simon. “I bet,” he said, “it has something to do with Thunderbird.”

Simon raised an eyebrow. “Tamaya? What does she have to do with it?”

She didn’t have anything to do with it, but Evander was nothing if not a good liar.

"They’re spending an awful lot of time together; They might be... I don't know, interested in each other."

There was absolutely no way in hell Hugh would ever be interested in Thunderbird. For starters, she wasn’t the right gender, and Tamaya already had her eyes set on Kasumi. Of course, Evander was probably the only one who’d noticed. What with his hyperawareness an all.

Simon, on the other hand, gave him the reaction he’d been looking for. The Dread Warden’s eyes narrowed and focused on the streets below. He’d very visibly stiffened.  
Well, no, he hadn’t ‘visibly’ stiffened. Not really, anyway, since the guy had turned fucking invisible.

Despite the guilt he was feeling, Evander was relieved that the matter had been somewhat confirmed. The Dread Warden was visibly- no, invisibly angry enough to keep Evander’s mouth shut for a while regardless.

The cold gale was as strong as ever, now cold enough for even his numb skin to feel. He shoved down any complaints, since it was pretty clear Simon was feeling much worse than he was.

God, Simon and Hugh were the two most oblivious prodigies to ever live.

 

 

The Gatlon clock-tower had struck one when it began to drizzle. It was a hellish addition to the already frigid air, though Evander currently had bigger problems than the weather. The Dread Warden hadn’t said a word after his ‘Tamaya’ comment. He was either heartbroken or had gone off to sulk somewhere else. (not that anybody would be able to tell while he was invisible.)

Evander looked over to his side where Simon was sitting. Probably.

“Hey, Simon.”

Nothing. Taking a more proactive approach, he bent a beam of barely visible light towards Simon. The extra light would mess with Simon’s abilities, and ‘un-bend’ the light around him. A quick fix for visibility.

It had confirmed that Simon was still sitting next to him, with his knees to his chest and his eyes fixed on the cityscape. The rain added an even more depressing element to the scene. There was no way that he’d initiate a conversation, especially regarding Hugh. Who could blame him? He thought his crush was straight and dating _freaking Tamaya Rae._

“Hey, Si-”

“ _What,_ Evander?”

Evander paused, and settled for a, "Say something."

Simon let out a choked breath, “What do you want me to say? If they’re interested in each other romantically, why should I care? I’m happy for them.” Simon deflated a bit, as though even _he_ wasn’t buying the lie. “Satisfied?”

Evander chose his next words carefully. “Are you really happy for them, Simon?”

The Dread Warden pursed his mouth and looked away. For his friend, it was answer enough.

“Simon…” Evander reached out to touch the Renegade’s shoulder and felt heavy with his next words. “You like him, don’t you?”

For a moment, he didn’t know what would happen at all. He couldn’t predict whether Simon would scream at him or if he’d break down crying. He might turn invisible and never speak to Evander again; Evander couldn’t tell.

Memories of his brother talking about his crush came back to him. It was enough to make him feel nauseous.

But then Simon resigned himself - thank _god -_ and slumped his shoulders. He wouldn’t meet his eyes.

"I-yeah. I do. And now he’s going out with  _Tamaya Rae_ and I... I..." he trailed off.

Evander didn’t move his hand from Simon’s shoulder, and shifted closer so he could lower his voice. (Simon was more comfortable when people spoke quietly- Evander didn’t know why, and he wouldn’t ask.)

“I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but Hugh has literally only been acting differently towards you.” Simon squeezed himself tighter. Evander was treading on dangerous ground, and they both knew it. “He might reciprocate your feelings. Maybe.”

Simon sent him a glance, and scoffed, “He _is_ spending loads of time with Thunderbird, Evander, you said so yourself. He might not even be into guys.”

Evander was put slightly off guard on being called out on his bluff, but, eh, screw it. The moment needed some humor.

“Alright, yeah, you caught me. She probably spends all her time listening to Hugh gush about you anyway. And I’m pretty sure Chromium is into guys,” A pause, “I’ve noticed.”

Simon grinned ever-so-slightly. He hesitated before looking up at Evander. "I...I think I love him. And I don't want stuff to change between us right now...not now, in the middle of all," he gestured down to a street fight breaking out on the road below, "this."

Sure, Simon. Use the Age of Anarchy as an excuse to hide your feelings.

The street fight was getting more and more serious. When the gang had brought out their guns, both Renegades decided to intervene.

Before leaping off the roof, The Dread Warden caught Evander’s shoulder.

“Don’t tell Hugh about this. Please, Evander.”

And, oh, how Evander wanted to tell Simon about Hugh Everhart’s _extremely obvious crush_  on him. How he wanted to sort out their tangle of feelings to make sure it didn’t interfere with their safety.

But the gang on the street had begun firing their guns, and the Renegades had a job to do.

“Sure, Simon.”


End file.
